Regarding the controversial decisions of referee Le Vu Linh in the match between Ho Chi Minh City and Thanh Hoa, on the afternoon of February 15, the Referees of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and the tournament organizing committee responded.
Accordingly, regarding Thanh Hoa coach Popov receiving a second yellow card and being fired from his coaching position, the Referee explained: In that situation, Mr. Popov kicked a bottle of water at the limit of the team's technical area. According to Law 12 on "Fakes and wrongdoings" clearly stipulates the form of punishment for football officials in Article 3.2, this coach's behavior of "reacting with words or actions includes: Carrying/ckering a bottle of water or other objects".
The main referee did not observe but after consulting with the table referee, Mr. Le Vu Linh decided to give coach Popov a second yellow card".
In addition, regarding the situation where foreign player Ribamar fell in the penalty area of the Ho Chi Minh City team but no penalty decision was issued, the Referee Board said: "Many questions are raised about why VAR did not intervene. In fact, VAR is always active, reviewing all situations and VAR is only used in cases of a "clear mistake" or "serious situation missed" related to: Goal/no goal; penalty/no penalty; Direct red card (not a second yellow card/second warning); Determining the wrongly violating player (in case the referee warns/grants a yellow card orfeases him from the competition).
Back to the 65th minute situation, the main referee and the VAR referees coordinated and complied with FIFA regulations in a match with VAR and there were no penalties in this situation.
In situations where there is a consensus in the decision of the main referee and the VAR referee, the decision of the main referee will be confirmed without having to consult the screen.
Previously, on the evening of February 14, Ho Chi Minh City club hosted Thanh Hoa away. The two teams created a tense match and ended in a 2-2 draw.
The highlight of the match was that coach Popov of the away team was sent off for a red card (2 yellow cards) and technical director Hoang Thanh Tung was also given 2 yellow cards for the same mistake.
